Process and device for reducing environmental contaminates in heavy marine fuel oil

ABSTRACT

A process for reducing the environmental contaminants in a ISO 8217 compliant Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil, the process involving: mixing a quantity of the Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil with a quantity of Activating Gas mixture to give a feedstock mixture; contacting the feedstock mixture with one or more catalysts to form a Process Mixture from the feedstock mixture; separating the Product Heavy Marine Fuel Oil liquid components of the Process Mixture from the gaseous components and by-product hydrocarbon components of the Process Mixture and, discharging the Product Heavy Marine Fuel Oil. The Product Heavy Marine Fuel Oil is compliant with ISO 8217 for residual marine fuel oils and has a sulfur level has a maximum sulfur content (ISO 14596 or ISO 8754) between the range of 0.05 % wt. to 0.5 % wt.. The Product Heavy Marine Fuel Oil can be used as or as a blending stock for an ISO 8217 compliant, IMO MARPOL Annex VI (revised) compliant low sulfur or ultralow sulfur heavy marine fuel oil. A device for conducting the process is also disclosed.

BACKGROUND

001. There are two marine fuel oil types, distillate based marine fueloil, and residual based marine fuel oil. Distillate based marine fuel,also known as Marine Gas Oil (MGO) or Marine Diesel Oil (MDO) comprisespetroleum fractions separated from crude oil in a refinery via adistillation process. Gasoil (also known as medium diesel) is apetroleum distillate intermediate in boiling range and viscosity betweenkerosene and lubricating oil containing a mixture of C₁₀₋₁₉hydrocarbons. Gasoil is used to heat homes and is used for heavyequipment such as cranes, bulldozers, generators, bobcats, tractors andcombine harvesters. Generally maximizing gasoil recovery from residuesis the most economic use of the materials by refiners because they cancrack gas oils into valuable gasoline and distillates. Diesel oils arevery similar to gas oils with diesel containing predominantly contain amixture of C₁₀ through C₁₉ hydrocarbons, which include approximately 64%aliphatic hydrocarbons, 1 - 2% olefinic hydrocarbons, and 35% aromatichydrocarbons. Marine Diesels may contain up to 15% residual processstreams, and optionally up to no more than 5% volume of polycyclicaromatic hydrocarbons (asphaltenes). Diesel fuels are primarily utilizedas a land transport fuel and as blending component with kerosene to formaviation jet fuel.

002. Residual based fuels or Heavy Marine Fuel Oil (HMFO) comprises amixture of process residues - the fractions that don’t boil or vaporizeeven under vacuum conditions, and have an asphaltene content between 3and 20 percent by weight. Asphaltenes are large and complex polycyclichydrocarbons with a propensity to form complex and waxy precipitates.Once asphaltenes have precipitated out, they are notoriously difficultto redissolve and are described as fuel tank sludge in the marineshipping industry and marine bunker fueling industry.

003. Large ocean-going ships have relied upon HMFO to power large twostroke diesel engines for over 50 years. HMFO is a blend of aromatics,distillates, and residues generated in the crude oil refinery process.Typical streams included in the formulation of HMFO include: atmospherictower bottoms (i.e. atmospheric residues), vacuum tower bottoms (i.e.vacuum residues) visbreaker residue, FCC Light Cycle Oil (LCO), FCCHeavy Cycle Oil (HCO) also known as FCC bottoms, FCC Slurry Oil, heavygas oils and delayed cracker oil (DCO), polycylic aromatic hydrocarbons,reclaimed land transport motor oils and small portions (less than 20% byvolume) of cutter oil, kerosene or diesel to achieve a desiredviscosity. HMFO has an aromatic content higher than the marinedistillate fuels noted above. The HMFO composition is complex and varieswith the source of crude oil and the refinery processes utilized toextract the most value out of a barrel of crude oil. The mixture ofcomponents is generally characterized as being viscous, high in sulfurand metal content, and high in asphaltenes making HMFO the one productof the refining process that has a per barrel value less than thefeedstock crude oil itself.

004. Industry statistics indicate that about 90% of the HMFO soldcontains 3.5 weight % sulfur. With an estimated total worldwideconsumption of HMFO of approximately 300 million tons per year, theannual production of sulfur dioxide by the shipping industry isestimated to be over 21 million tons per year. Emissions from HMFOburning in ships contribute significantly to both global air pollutionand local air pollution levels.

005. MARPOL, the International Convention for the Prevention ofPollution from Ships, as administered by the International MaritimeOrganization (IMO) was enacted to prevent pollution from ships. In 1997,a new annex was added to MARPOL; the Regulations for the Prevention ofAir Pollution from Ships - Annex VI to minimize airborne emissions fromships (SOx, NOx, ODS, VOC) and their contribution to air pollution. Arevised Annex VI with tightened emissions limits was adopted in October2008 having effect on 1 Jul. 2010 (hereafter referred to as Annex VI(revised) or simply Annex VI).

006. MARPOL Annex VI (revised) established a set of stringent emissionslimits for vessel operations in designated Emission Control Areas(ECAs). The ECAs under MARPOL Annex VI (revised) are: i) Baltic Sea area– as defined in Annex I of MARPOL – SOx only; ii) North Sea area - asdefined in Annex V of MARPOL - SOx only; iii) North American – asdefined in Appendix VII of Annex VI of MARPOL – SOx, NOx and PM; and,iv) United States Caribbean Sea area – as defined in Appendix VII ofAnnex VI of MARPOL – SOx, NOx and PM.

007. Annex VI (revised) was codified in the United States by the Act toPrevent Pollution from Ships (APPS). Under the authority of APPS, theU.S. Environmental Protection Agency (the EPA), in consultation with theUnited States Coast Guard (USCG), promulgated regulations whichincorporate by reference the full text of MARPOL Annex VI (revised). See40 C.F.R. § 1043.100(a)(1). On Aug. 1, 2012 the maximum sulfur contentof all marine fuel oils used onboard ships operating in US waters / ECAcannot exceed 1.00% wt. (10,000 ppm) and on Jan. 1, 2015 the maximumsulfur content of all marine fuel oils used in the North American ECAwas lowered to 0.10% wt. (1,000 ppm). At the time of implementation, theUnited States government indicated that vessel operators must vigorouslyprepare for the 0.10% wt. (1,000 ppm) US ECA marine fuel oil sulfurstandard. To encourage compliance, the EPA and USCG refused to considerthe cost of compliant low sulfur fuel oil to be a valid basis forclaiming that compliant fuel oil was not available for purchase. For thepast five years there has been a very strong economic incentive to meetthe marine industry demands for low sulfur HMFO, however technicallyviable solutions have not been realized. There is an on-going and urgentdemand for processes and methods for making a low sulfur HMFO that iscompliant with MARPOL Annex VI emissions requirements.

008. Because of the ECAs, all ocean-going ships which operate bothoutside and inside these ECAs must operate on different marine fuel oilsto comply with the respective limits and achieve maximum economicefficiency. In such cases, prior to entry into the ECA, a ship isrequired to fully change-over to using the ECA compliant marine fueloil, and to have onboard implemented written procedures on how this isto be undertaken. Similarly change-over from using the ECA compliantfuel oil back to HMFO is not to commence until after exiting the ECA.With each change-over it is required that the quantities of the ECAcompliant fuel oils onboard are recorded, with the date, time andposition of the ship when either completing the change-over prior toentry or commencing change-over after exit from such areas. Theserecords are to be made in a logbook as prescribed by the ship’s flagState, absent any specific requirement the record could be made, forexample, in the ship’s Annex I Oil Record Book.

009. The Annex VI (revised) also sets global limits on sulfur oxide andnitrogen oxide emissions from ship exhausts and particulate matter andprohibits deliberate emissions of ozone depleting substances, such ashydro-chlorofluorocarbons. Under the revised MARPOL Annex VI, the globalsulfur cap for HMFO was reduced to 3.50% wt. effective 1 Jan. 2012; thenfurther reduced to 0.50 % wt, effective 1 Jan. 2020. This regulation hasbeen the subject of much discussion in both the marine shipping andmarine fuel bunkering industry. Under the global limit, all ships mustuse HMFO with a sulfur content of not over 0.50% wt. The IMO hasrepeatedly indicated to the marine shipping industry thatnotwithstanding availability of compliant fuel or the price of compliantfuel, compliance with the 0.50% wt. sulfur limit for HMFO will occur on1 Jan. 2020 and that the IMO expects the fuel oil market to solve thisrequirement. There has been a very strong economic incentive to meet theinternational marine industry demands for low sulfur HMFO, howevertechnically viable solutions have not been realized. Thus there is anon-going and urgent demand for processes and methods for making a lowsulfur HMFO that is compliant with MARPOL Annex VI emissionsrequirements.

010. IMO Regulation 14 provides both the limit values and the means tocomply. These may be divided into methods termed primary (in which theformation of the pollutant is avoided) or secondary (in which thepollutant is formed but removed prior to discharge of the exhaust gasstream to the atmosphere). There are no guidelines regarding any primarymethods (which could encompass, for example, onboard blending of liquidfuel oils or dual fuel (gas / liquid) use). In secondary controlmethods, guidelines (MEPC.184(59)) have been adopted for exhaust gascleaning systems; in using such arrangements there would be noconstraint on the sulfur content of the fuel oils as bunkered other thanthat given the system’s certification. For numerous technical andeconomic reasons, secondary controls have been rejected by majorshipping companies and not widely adopted in the marine shippingindustry. The use of secondary controls is not seen as practicalsolution by the marine shipping industry.

011. Primary control solutions: A focus for compliance with the MARPOLrequirements has been on primary control solutions for reducing thesulfur levels in marine fuel components prior to combustion based on thesubstitution of HMFO with alternative fuels. However, the switch fromHMFO to alternative fuels poses a range of issues for vessel operators,many of which are still not understood by either the shipping industryor the refining industry. Because of the potential risks to shipspropulsion systems (i.e. fuel systems, engines, etc..) when a shipswitches fuel, the conversion process must be done safely andeffectively to avoid any technical issues. However, each alternativefuel has both economic and technical difficulties adapting to thedecades of shipping infrastructure and bunkering systems based upon HMFOutilized by the marine shipping industry.

012. LNG: The most prevalent primary control solution in the shippingindustry is the adoption of LNG as a primary or additive fuel to HMFO.An increasing number of ships are using liquified natural gas (LNG) as aprimary fuel. Natural gas as a marine fuel for combustion turbines andin diesel engines leads to negligible sulfur oxide emissions. Thebenefits of natural gas have been recognized in the development by IMOof the International Code for Ships using Gases and other Low FlashpointFuels (the IGF Code), which was adopted in 2015. LNG however presentsthe marine industry with operating challenges including: on-boardstorage of a cryogenic liquid in a marine environment will requireextensive renovation and replacement of the bunker fuel storage and fueltransfer systems of the ship; the supply of LNG is far from ubiquitousin major world ports; updated crew qualifications and training onoperating LNG or duel fuel engines will be required prior to going tosea.

013. Sulfur Free Bio-fuels: Another proposed primary solution forobtaining compliance with the MARPOL requirements is the substitution ofHMFO with sulfur free bio-fuels. Bio-diesel has had limited success indisplacing petroleum derived diesel however supply remains constrained.Methanol has been used on some short sea services in the North Sea ECAon ferries and other littoral ships. The wide spread adoption ofbio-fuel, such as bio-diesel or methanol, present many challenges toship owners and the bunker fuel industry. These challenges include: fuelsystem compatibility and adaptation of existing fuel systems will berequired; contamination during long term storage of methanol andbiodiesel from water and biological contamination; the heat content ofmethanol and bio-diesel on a per ton basis is substantially lower thanHMFO; and methanol has a high vapor pressure and presents serious safetyconcerns of flash fires.

014. Replacement of heavy fuel oil with marine gas oil or marine diesel:A third proposed primary solution is to simply replace HMFO with marinegas oil (MGO) or marine diesel (MDO). The first major difficulty is theconstraint in global supply of distillate materials that make up over90% vol of MGO and MDO. It is reported that the effective spare capacityto produce MGO is less than 100 million metric tons per year resultingin an annual shortfall in marine fuel of over 200 million metric tonsper year. Refiners not only lack the capacity to increase the productionof MGO, but they have no economic motivation because higher value andhigher margins can be obtained from ultra-low sulfur diesel fuel forland-based transportation systems (i.e. trucks, trains, mass transitsystems, heavy construction equipment, etc..).

015. Blending: Another primary solution is the blending of HMFO withlower sulfur containing fuels such as low sulfur marine diesel (0.1% wt.sulfur) to achieve a Product HMFO with a sulfur content of 0.5% wt. In astraight blending approach (based on linear blending) every 1 ton ofHSFO (3.5% sulfur) requires 7.5 tons of MGO or MDO material with 0.1 %wt. S to achieve a sulfur level of 0.5% wt. HMFO. One of skill in theart of fuel blending will immediately understand that blending hurts keyproperties of the HMFO, specifically viscosity and density aresubstantially altered. Further a blending process may result in a fuelwith variable viscosity and density that may no longer meet therequirements for a HMFO.

016. Further complications may arise when blended HMFO is introducedinto the bunkering infrastructure and shipboard systems otherwisedesigned for unblended HMFO. There is a real risk of incompatibilitywhen the two fuels are mixed. Blending a mostly paraffinic-typedistillate fuel (MGO or MDO) with a HMFO having a high aromatic contentoften correlates with poor solubility of asphaltenes. A blended fuel islikely to result in the precipitation of asphaltenes and/or highlyparaffinic materials from the distillate material forming an intractablefuel tank sludge. Fuel tank sludge causes clogging of filters andseparators, transfer pumps and lines, build-up of sludge in storagetanks, sticking of fuel injection pumps (deposits on plunger andbarrel), and plugged fuel nozzles. Such a risk to the primary propulsionsystem is not acceptable for a cargo ship in the open ocean.

017. Lastly blending of HMFO with marine distillate products (MGO orMDO) is not economically feasible. A blender will be taking a high valueproduct (0.1% S marine gas oil (MGO) or marine diesel (MDO)) andblending it 7.5 to 1 with a low value high sulfur HMFO to create a finalIMO / MARPOL compliant HMFO (i.e. 0.5% wt. S Low Sulfur Heavy MarineFuel Oil - LSHMFO). It is expected that LSHMFO will sell at a lowerprice on a per ton basis than the value of the two blending stocksalone.

018. Processing of residual oil. For the past several decades, the focusof refining industry research efforts related to the processing of heavyoils (crude oils, distressed oils, or residual oils) has been onupgrading the properties of these low value refinery process oils tocreate lighter oils with greater value. The challenge has been thatcrude oil, distressed oil and residues can be unstable and contain highlevels of sulfur, nitrogen, phosphorous, metals (especially vanadium andnickel) and asphaltenes. Much of the nickel and vanadium is in difficultto remove chelates with porphyrins. Vanadium and nickel porphyrins andother metal organic compounds are responsible for catalyst contaminationand corrosion problems in the refinery. The sulfur, nitrogen, andphosphorous, are removed because they are well-known poisons for theprecious metal (platinum and palladium) catalysts utilized in theprocesses downstream of the atmospheric or vacuum distillation towers.

019. The difficulties treating atmospheric or vacuum residual streamshas been known for many years and has been the subject of considerableresearch and investigation. Numerous residue-oil conversion processeshave been developed in which the goals are same, 1) create a morevaluable, preferably distillate range hydrocarbon product; and 2)concentrate the contaminates such as sulfur, nitrogen, phosphorous,metals and asphaltenes into a form (coke, heavy coker residue, FCCslurry oil) for removal from the refinery stream. Well known andaccepted practice in the refining industry is to increase the reactionseverity (elevated temperature and pressure) to produce hydrocarbonproducts that are lighter and more purified, increase catalyst lifetimes and remove sulfur, nitrogen, phosphorous, metals and asphaltenesfrom the refinery stream.

020. It is also well known in these processes that the nature of thefeedstock has a significant influence upon the products produced,catalyst life, and ultimately the economic viability of the process. Ina representative technical paper Residual-Oil Hydrotreating Kinetics forGraded Catalyst Systems: Effects of Original and Treated Feedstocks, isstated that “The results revealed significant changes in activity,depending on the feedstock used for the tests. The study demonstratesthe importance of proper selection of the feedstocks used in theperformance evaluation and screening of candidate catalyst for gradedcatalyst systems for residual-oil hydrotreatment.” From this one skilledin the art would understand that the conditions required for thesuccessful hydroprocessing of atmospheric residue are not applicable forthe successful hydroprocessing of vacuum residue which are notapplicable for the successful hydroprocessing of a visbreaker residue,and so forth. Successful reaction conditions depend upon the feedstock.For this reason modern complex refineries have multiple hydroprocessingunits, each unit being targeted on specific hydrocarbon stream with afocus on creating desirable and valuable light hydrocarbons andproviding a product acceptable to the next downstream process.

021. A further difficulty in the processing of heavy oil residues andother heavy hydrocarbons is the inherent instability of eachintermediate refinery stream. One of skill in the art understands thereare many practical reasons each refinery stream is handled in isolation.One such reason is the unpredictable nature of the asphaltenes containedin each stream. Asphaltenes are large and complex hydrocarbons with apropensity to precipitate out of refinery hydrocarbon streams. One ofskill in the art knows that even small changes in the components orphysical conditions (temperature, pressure) can precipitate asphaltenesthat were otherwise dissolved in solution. Once precipitated fromsolution, asphaltenes can quickly block vital lines, control valves,coat critical sensing devices (i.e. temperature and pressure sensors)and generally result in the severe and very costly disruption and shutdown of a unit or the whole refinery. For this reason it has been along-standing practice within refineries to not blend intermediateproduct streams (such as atmospheric residue, vacuum residue, FCC slurryoil, etc...) and process each stream in separate reactors.

022. In summary, since the announcement of the MARPOL standards reducingthe global levels of sulfur in HMFO, refiners of crude oil have notundertaken the technical efforts to create a low sulfur substitute forHMFO. Despite the strong governmental and economic incentives and needsof the international marine shipping industry, refiners have littleeconomic reason to address the removal of environmental contaminatesfrom HMFOs. Instead the global refining industry has been focused upongenerating greater value from each barrel of oil by creating lighthydrocarbons (i.e. diesel and gasoline) and concentrating theenvironmental contaminates into increasingly lower value streams (i.e.residues) and products (petroleum coke, HMFO). Shipping companies havefocused on short term solutions, such as the installation of scrubbingunits, or adopting the limited use of more expensive low sulfur marinediesel and marine gas oils as a substitute for HMFO. On the open seas,most if not all major shipping companies continue to utilize the mosteconomically viable fuel, that is HMFO. There remains a long standingand unmet need for processes and devices that remove the environmentalcontaminants (i.e. sulfur, nitrogen, phosphorous, metals especiallyvanadium and nickel) from HMFO without altering the qualities andproperties that make HMFO the most economic and practical means ofpowering ocean going vessels. Further there remains a long standing andunmet need for IMO compliant low sulfur (i.e. 0.5% wt. sulfur) orultralow (0.10 wt. sulfur) HMFO that is also compliant with the bulkproperties required for a merchantable ISO 8217 HMFO.

SUMMARY

023. It is a general objective to reduce the environmental contaminatesfrom a Heavy Marine Fuel Oil (HMFO) in a process that minimizes thechanges in the desirable properties of the HMFO and minimizes theunnecessary production of by-product hydrocarbons (i.e. light distillatehydrocarbons having C1-C8 and wild naphtha (C5-C20).

024. A first aspect and illustrative embodiment encompasses a processfor reducing the environmental contaminants in a Feedstock Heavy MarineFuel Oil, the process involving: mixing a quantity of Feedstock HeavyMarine Fuel Oil with a quantity of Activating Gas mixture to give aFeedstock Mixture; contacting the Feedstock Mixture with one or morecatalysts to form a Process Mixture from the Feedstock Mixture;receiving said Process Mixture and separating a Product Heavy MarineFuel Oil liquid components of the Process Mixture from the gaseouscomponents and by-product hydrocarbon components of the Process Mixtureand, discharging the Product Heavy Marine Fuel Oil.

025. A second aspect and illustrative embodiment encompasses a processfor reducing the environmental contaminants in HMFO, in which theprocess involves: mixing a quantity of Feedstock HMFO with a quantity ofActivating Gas mixture to give a feedstock mixture; contacting thefeedstock mixture with one or more catalysts to form a Process Mixturefrom the feedstock mixture; receiving said Process Mixture andseparating the liquid components of the Process Mixture from the bulkgaseous components of the Process Mixture; receiving said liquidcomponents and separating any residual gaseous components and by-producthydrocarbon components from the processed Product HMFO; and, dischargingthe processed Product HMFO.

026. A third aspect and illustrative embodiment encompasses a device forreducing environmental contaminants in a Feedstock HMFO, the devicehaving a first vessel, a second vessel in fluid communication with thefirst vessel and a third vessel in fluid communication with the secondvessel and a discharge line from the third vessel for discharging theProduct HMFO. The first vessel receives a quantity of the Feedstock HMFOmixed with a quantity of an Activating Gas mixture and contacting theresulting mixture with one or more catalysts under certain processconditions to form a Process Mixture. The second vessel receives theProcess Mixture from the first vessel, and separates the liquidcomponents from the bulk gaseous components within the Process Mixture.The bulk gaseous components are sent on for further processing. Theliquid components are sent to the third vessel separates any residualgaseous component and any by-product hydrocarbon components (principallylights and wild naphtha) from the processed Product HMFO which issubsequently discharged.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

027. FIG. 1 is a process flow diagram of a process to produce ProductHMFO.

028. FIG. 2 is a basic schematic diagram of a plant to produce ProductHMFO.

029. FIG. 3 a is a basic schematic diagram of a first alternativevariation of the Reactor Section in a plant to produce Product HMFO inthe second illustrative embodiment.

030. FIG. 3 b is a basic schematic diagram of a second alternativevariation of the Reactor Section in a plant to produce Product HMFO inthe second illustrative embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

031. The inventive concepts as described herein utilize terms thatshould be well known to one of skill in the art, however certain termsare utilized having a specific intended meaning and these terms aredefined below:

-   Heavy Marine Fuel Oil (HMFO) is a petroleum product fuel compliant    with the ISO 8217 :2017 standards for the bulk properties of    residual marine fuels except for the concentration levels of the    Environmental Contaminates.-   Environmental Contaminates are organic and inorganic components of    HMFO that result in the formation of SO_(x), NO_(x) and particulate    materials upon combustion.-   Feedstock HMFO is a petroleum product fuel compliant with the ISO    8217 :2017 standards for the bulk properties of residual marine    fuels except for the concentration of Environmental Contaminates,    preferably the Feedstock HMFO has a sulfur content greater than the    global MARPOL standard of 0.5% wt. sulfur, and preferably and has a    sulfur content (ISO 14596 or ISO 8754) between the range of 5.0 %    wt. to 1.0 % wt. sulfur (ISO 14596 or ISO 8754).-   Product HMFO is a petroleum product fuel compliant with the ISO 8217    :2017 standards for the bulk properties of residual marine fuels and    achieves a sulfur content lower than the global MARPOL standard of    0.5% wt. sulfur (ISO 14596 or ISO 8754), and preferably a maximum    sulfur content (ISO 14596 or ISO 8754) between the range of 0.05 %    wt. to 1.0 % wt.-   Activating Gas: is a mixture of gases utilized in the process    combined with the catalyst to remove the environmental contaminates    from the Feedstock HMFO.-   Fluid communication: is the capability to transfer fluids (either    liquid, gas or combinations thereof, which might have suspended    solids) from a first vessel or location to a second vessel or    location, this may encompass connections made by pipes (also called    a line), spools, valves, intermediate holding tanks or surge tanks    (also called a drum).-   Merchantable quality: is a level of quality for a residual marine    fuel oil so that the fuel is fit for the ordinary purpose it is    intended to serve (i.e. serve as a residual fuel source for a marine    ship) and can be commercially sold as and is fungible with heavy or    residual marine bunker fuel.-   Bbl or bbl: is a standard volumetric measure for oil; 1 bbl =    0.1589873 m³; or 1 bbl = 158.9873 liters; or 1 bbl = 42.00 US liquid    gallons.-   Bpd: is an abbreviation for Bbl per day.-   SCF: is an abbreviation for standard cubic foot of a gas; a standard    cubic foot (at 14.73 psi and 60° F. ) equals 0.0283058557 standard    cubic meters (at 101.325 kPa and 15° C. ).

032. The inventive concepts are illustrated in more detail in thisdescription referring to the drawings, in which FIG. 1 shows thegeneralized block process flows for reducing the environmentalcontaminates in a Feedstock HMFO and producing a Product HMFO accordingto a first illustrative embodiment. A predetermined volume of FeedstockHMFO (2) is mixed with a predetermined quantity of Activating Gas (4) togive a Feedstock Mixture. The Feedstock HMFO utilized generally complieswith the bulk physical and certain key chemical properties for aresidual marine fuel oil otherwise compliant with ISO8217:2017 exclusiveof the Environmental Contaminates. More particularly, when theEnvironmental Contaminate is sulfur, the concentration of sulfur in theFeedstock HMFO may be between the range of 5.0% wt. to 1.0% wt. TheFeedstock HMFO should have bulk physical properties that are required ofan ISO8217:2017 compliant HMFO of: a maximum kinematic viscosity at 50 C(ISO 3104) between the range from 180 mm² / s to 700 mm² / s and amaximum density at 15° C. (ISO 3675) between the range of 991.0 kg / m³to 1010.0 kg / m³ and a CCAI is 780 to 870 and a flash point (ISO 2719)no lower than 60.0 C. Other properties of the Feedstock HMFO connectedto the formation of particulate material (PM) include: a maximum totalsediment – aged (ISO 10307-2) of 0.10 % wt. and a maximum carbon residue– micro method (ISO 10370) between the range of 18.00 % wt. and 20.00 %wt. and a maximum aluminum plus silicon (ISO 10478) content of 60 mg /kg. Potential Environmental Contaminates other than sulfur that may bepresent in the Feedstock HMFO over the ISO requirements may includevanadium, nickel, iron, aluminum and silicon substantially reduced bythe process of the present invention. However, one of skill in the artwill appreciate that the vanadium content serves as a general indicatorof these other Environmental Contaminates. In one preferred embodimentthe vanadium content is ISO compliant so the Feedstock MHFO has amaximum vanadium content (ISO 14597) between the range from 350 mg / kgto 450 ppm mg / kg.

033. As for the properties of the Activating Gas, the Activating Gasshould be selected from mixtures of nitrogen, hydrogen, carbon dioxide,gaseous water, and methane. The mixture of gases within the ActivatingGas should have an ideal gas partial pressure of hydrogen (p_(H2))greater than 80% of the total pressure of the Activating Gas mixture (P)and more preferably wherein the Activating Gas has an ideal gas partialpressure of hydrogen (p_(H2)) greater than 95 % of the total pressure ofthe Activating Gas mixture (P). It will be appreciated by one of skillin the art that the molar content of the Activating Gas is anothercriteria the Activating Gas should have a hydrogen mole fraction in therange between 80 % and 100% of the total moles of Activating Gasmixture, more preferably wherein the Activating Gas has a hydrogen molefraction between 80 % and 99% of the total moles of Activating Gasmixture

034. The Feedstock Mixture (i.e. mixture of Feedstock HMFO andActivating Gas) is brought up to the process conditions of temperatureand pressure and introduced into a first vessel, preferably a reactorvessel, so the Feedstock Mixture is then contacted with one or morecatalysts (8) to form a Process Mixture from the Feedstock Mixture.

035. The process conditions are selected so the ratio of the quantity ofthe Activating Gas to the quantity of Feedstock HMFO is 250 scf gas /bbl of Feedstock HMFO to 10,000 scf gas / bbl of Feedstock HMFO; andpreferably between 2000 scf gas / bbl of Feedstock HMFO; 1 to 5000 scfgas / bbl of Feedstock HMFO more preferably between 2500 scf gas / bblof Feedstock HMFO to 4500 scf gas / bbl of Feedstock HMFO. The processconditions are selected so the total pressure in the first vessel isbetween of 250 psig and 3000 psig; preferably between 1000 psig and 2500psig, and more preferably between 1500 psig and 2200 psig The processconditions are selected so the indicated temperature within the firstvessel is between of 500° F. to 900 F, preferably between 650° F. and850° F. and more preferably between 680° F. and 800° F. The processconditions are selected so the liquid hourly space velocity within thefirst vessel is between 0.05 oil /hour / m³ catalyst and 1.0 oil /hour /m³ catalyst; preferably between 0.08 oil /hour / m³ catalyst and 0.5 oil/hour / m³ catalyst; and more preferably between 0.1 oil /hour / m³catalyst and 0.3 oil /hour / m³ catalyst to achieve desulfurization withproduct sulfur levels below 0.5 %wt..

036. One of skill in the art will appreciate that the process conditionsare determined to consider the hydraulic capacity of the unit. Exemplaryhydraulic capacity for the treatment unit may be between 100 bbl ofFeedstock HMFO / day and 100,000 bbl of Feedstock HMFO / day, preferablybetween 1000 bbl of Feedstock HMFO / day and 60,000 bbl of FeedstockHMFO / day, more preferably between 5,000 bbl of Feedstock HMFO / dayand 45,000 bbl of Feedstock HMFO / day, and even more preferably between10,000 bbl of Feedstock HMFO / day and 30,000 bbl of Feedstock HMFO /day

037. The process may utilize one or more catalyst systems selected fromthe group consisting of: an ebulliated bed supported transition metalheterogeneous catalyst, a fixed bed supported transition metalheterogeneous catalyst, and a combination of ebulliated bed supportedtransition metal heterogeneous catalysts and fixed bed supportedtransition metal heterogeneous catalysts. One of skill in the art willappreciate that a fixed bed supported transition metal heterogeneouscatalyst will be the technically easiest to implement and is preferred.The transition metal heterogeneous catalyst comprises a porous inorganicoxide catalyst carrier and a transition metal catalyst. The porousinorganic oxide catalyst carrier is at least one carrier selected fromthe group consisting of alumina, alumina/boria carrier, a carriercontaining metal-containing aluminosilicate, alumina/phosphorus carrier,alumina/alkaline earth metal compound carrier, alumina/titania carrierand alumina/zirconia carrier. The transition metal component of thecatalyst is one or more metals selected from the group consisting ofgroup 6, 8, 9 and 10 of the Periodic Table. In a preferred andillustrative embodiment, the transition metal heterogeneous catalyst isa porous inorganic oxide catalyst carrier and a transition metalcatalyst, in which the preferred porous inorganic oxide catalyst carrieris alumina and the preferred transition metal catalyst is Ni—Mo, Co—Mo,Ni—W or Ni — Co—Mo

038. The Process Mixture (10) is removed from the first vessel (8) andfrom being in contact with the one or more catalyst and is sent viafluid communication to a second vessel (12), preferably a gas-liquidseparator or hot separators and cold separators, for separating theliquid components (14) of the Process Mixture from the bulk gaseouscomponents (16) of the Process Mixture. The gaseous components (16) aretreated beyond the battery limits of the immediate process. Such gaseouscomponents may include a mixture of Activating Gas components andlighter hydrocarbons (mostly methane, ethane and propane but some wildnaphtha) that may have been unavoidably formed as part of the by-producthydrocarbons from the process.

039. The Liquid Components (16) are sent via fluid communication to athird vessel (18), preferably a fuel oil product stripper system, forseparating any residual gaseous components (20) and by-producthydrocarbon components (22) from the Product HMFO (24). The residualgaseous components (20) may be a mixture of gases selected from thegroup consisting of: nitrogen, hydrogen, carbon dioxide, hydrogensulfide, gaseous water, C1-C5 hydrocarbons. This residual gas is treatedoutside of the battery limits of the immediate process, combined withother gaseous components (16) removed from the Process Mixture (10) inthe second vessel (12). The liquid by-product hydrocarbon component,which are condensable hydrocarbons unavoidably formed in the process(22) may be a mixture selected from the group consisting of C5-C20hydrocarbons (wild naphtha) (naphtha - diesel) and other condensablelight liquid (C4-C8) hydrocarbons that can be utilized as part of themotor fuel blending pool or sold as gasoline and diesel blendingcomponents on the open market.

040. The processed Product HMFO (24) is discharged via fluidcommunication into storage tanks beyond the battery limits of theimmediate process. The Product HMFO complies with ISO8217:2017 and has amaximum sulfur content (ISO 14596 or ISO 8754) between the range of 0.05% wt. to 1.0 % wt. preferably a sulfur content (ISO 14596 or ISO 8754)between the range of 0.05 % wt. ppm and 0.7 % wt. and more preferably asulfur content (ISO 14596 or ISO 8754) between the range of 0.1 % wt.and 0.5 % wt.. The vanadium content of the Product HMFO is also ISOcompliant with a maximum vanadium content (ISO 14597) between the rangefrom 350 mg / kg to 450 ppm mg / kg, preferably a vanadium content (ISO14597) between the range of200 mg / kg and 300 mg / kg and morepreferably a vanadium content (ISO 14597) between the range of 50 mg /kg and 100 mg / kg.

041. The Feedstock HFMO should have bulk physical properties that areISO compliant of: a maximum kinematic viscosity at 50 C (ISO 3104)between the range from 180 mm² / s to 700 mm² / s; a maximum density at15 C (ISO 3675) between the range of 991.0 kg / m³ to 1010.0 kg / m³; aCCAI is in the range of 780 to 870 ; a flash point (ISO 2719) no lowerthan 60.0 C a maximum total sediment – aged (ISO 10307-2) of 0.10 % wt.;a maximum carbon residue – micro method (ISO 10370) between the range of18.00 % wt. and 20.00 % wt., and a maximum aluminum plus silicon (ISO10478) content of 60 mg / kg.

042. The Product HMFO will have a sulfur content (ISO 14596 or ISO 8754)between 1 % and 10% of the maximum sulfur content of the Feedstock HeavyMarine Fuel Oil. That is the sulfur content of the Product will bereduced by about 80% or greater when compared to the Feedstock HMFO.Similarly, the vanadium content (ISO 14597) of the Product Heavy MarineFuel Oil is between 1 % and 10% of the maximum vanadium content of theFeedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil. One of skill in the art will appreciatethat the above data indicates a substantial reduction in sulfur andvanadium content indicate a process having achieved a substantialreduction in the Environmental Contaminates from the

Feedstock HMFO while maintaining the desirable properties of an ISOcompliant HMFO. 043. As a side note, the residual gaseous component is amixture of gases selected from the group consisting of: nitrogen,hydrogen, carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide, gaseous water, C1-C5hydrocarbons. An amine scrubber will effectively remove the hydrogensulfide content which can then be processed using technologies andprocesses well known to one of skill in the art. In one preferableillustrative embodiment, the hydrogen sulfide is converted intoelemental sulfur using the well-known Claus process. An alternativeembodiment utilizes a proprietary process for conversion of the Hydrogensulfide to hydro sulfuric acid. Either way, the sulfur is removed fromentering the environment prior to combusting the HMFO in a ships engine.The cleaned gas can be vented, flared or more preferably recycled backfor use as Activating Gas.

044. The by-product hydrocarbon components are a mixture of C5-C20hydrocarbons (wild naphtha) (naphtha - diesel) which can be directed tothe motor fuel blending pool or sold over the fence to an adjoiningrefinery or even utilized to fire the heaters and combustion turbines toprovide heat and power to the process. These by product hydrocarbonswhich are the result of hydrocracking reactions should be less than 10%wt. , preferably less than 5% wt. and more preferably less than 2% wt.of the overall process mass balance.

045. Production Plant Description: Turning now to a more detailedillustrative embodiment of a production plant, FIG. 2 shows a schematicfor a production plant implementing the process described above forreducing the environmental contaminates in a Feedstock HMFO to produce aProduct HMFO according to the second illustrative embodiment. Analternative embodiment for the production plant in which multiplereactors are utilized is provided in FIG. 3 a and FIG. 3 b within thescope of the present invention.

046. Tables 2 and 3 provide the stream identification and equipmentidentification utilized in FIG. 2 .

Table 2 Stream Identifications Utilized in FIG. 2 Stream ID NameDescription A Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil (HMFO) The Feedstock HMFOis a hydrocarbon stream with sulfur content greater than 10000 ppmw.Hydrocarbons range between C₁₂ - C₇₀₊ The stream’s boiling range isbetween 350° F. and 1110 + °F. A' pressurized Feedstock HMFO FeedstockHMFO brought up to pressure for the process A" partially heated andpressurized Feedstock HMFO Feedstock HMFO brought up to pressure for theprocess and partially heated B Product HMFO The Product HMFO is ahydrocarbon stream with Sulfur Content less than 5000 ppmw. Hydrocarbonsrange between C₁₂ and C₇₀₊. The stream’s boiling range is between 350°F. and 1110 + °F. C Activating Gas Activating Gas is selected frommixtures of nitrogen, hydrogen, carbon dioxide, gaseous water, andmethane, with an ideal gas partial pressure of hydrogen (p_(H2)) greaterthan 80% of the total pressure of the Activating Gas mixture (P) C'Activating Gas Recycle Provided from Amine Absorber and recompressed forrecycle into process C" Activating Gas Make-up Provided from OSBL DFeedstock Mixture Mixture of Feedstock HMFO and Activating Gas D′ HeatedFeedstock Mixture Mixture of Feedstock HMFO and Activating Gas heated toprocess conditions E Reactor System Effluent Product mixture fromReactor System E' partially cooled reactor System Effluent Productmixture from Reactor System F gaseous components of the Reactor SystemEffluent Sent to Hot Separator Vapor Air Cooler F' cooled gaseouscomponents of the Reactor System Effluent. Gaseous stream sent to ColdSeparator F" gaseous components from the Cold Separator Gaseous streamsent to Amine Absorber G liquid components of the Reactor SystemEffluent Hydrocarbon stream sent to Fuel Oil Product Stripper System HCold Separator Hydrocarbon liquids Hydrocarbon stream sent to Fuel OilProduct Stripper System I Condensed liquid water from Cold SeparatorSent OSBL for treatment J Lean Amine Lean Amine feeds the Amine Absorberto absorb H2S contained in the recycle hydrogen. K Rich Amine Rich Amineproduct from the Amine Absorber contains absorbed hydrogen sulfide. LScrubbed Purge Gas Scrubbed Purge Gas contains hydrogen, hydrocarbons,water vapor and ppm levels of hydrogen sulfide. M Fuel Oil Stripper VentFuel Oil Stripper Vent contains hydrogen, hydrogen sulfide, steam andhydrocarbons sent OSBL.

Table 3 Equipment Identifications Utilized in FIG. 2 Equipment ID NameDescription 1 Oil Feed Surge Drum Vessel that receives Feedstock HMFOfrom OSBL and provides surge volume adequate to ensure smooth operationof the unit. 1 b Feed line from Oil Feed Surge Drum to Oil Feed Pump 1 cWater discharge line from Feed Surge Drum Water discharge line to OSBL 3Oil Feed Pump Pump that delivers fuel oil at pressure required for theprocess. 3 a Line from Oil Feed Pump to Oil Feed / Product HeatExchanger 5 Oil Feed / Product Heat Exchanger Cross exchanger thatrecovers heat from the oil product to heat the oil feed. 5 a Line fromOil Feed / Product Heat Exchanger to Reactor Feed / Effluent HeatExchanger 7 Reactor Feed / Effluent Exchanger Cross exchanger thatrecovers heat from the reactor system effluent to the reactor feed. 7 aLine from the Reactor Feed / Effluent Exchanger to the Mixing Point (X)9 Reactor Feed Furnace Fired heater that heats reactor feed to specifiedreactor inlet temperature. 9 a Line from Mixing Point (X) to ReactorFeed Furnace 9 b Line from Reactor Feed Furnace to Reactor System 11Reactor System System of Vessel(s) loaded with catalyst(s). 11 a Linefrom Reactor System to Reactor Feed / Effluent Exchanger 11 b Line fromReactor Feed / Effluent Exchanger to Hot Separator 13 Hot SeparatorVessel receiving reactor system effluent after being cooled in ReactorFeed / Effluent Exchanger. 13 a Line connecting Hot Separator to line 17b and to Hot Separator Vapor Air Cooler 13 b Line from Hot Separator toOil Product Stripper System 15 Hot Separator Vapor Air Cooler Air CooledHeat Exchanger that cools vapor from the Hot Separator. 15 a Lineconnecting Hot Separator Vapor Air Cooler to Cold Separator 17 ColdSeparator Vessel receiving effluent from Hot Separator Vapor Air Cooler.17 a Line connecting Cold Separator to Amine Absorber 17 b Lineconnecting Cold Separator to line 13 b and Oil Product Stripper System17 c Water discharge line from Cold Separator to OSBL 19 Oil ProductStripper System Stripper Column and ancillary equipment and utilitiesrequired to remove hydrogen and hydrogen sulfide from the Product HMFO.19 a Vent stream line from Oil Product Stripper to OSBL 19 b Dischargeline for Product HMFO to OSBL 21 Amine Absorber Absorber Column thatremoves hydrogen sulfide from the vapor from the Cold Separator to formthe Recycle Activating Gas stream 21 a Lean Amine Feed line from OSBL 21b Rich Amine discharge line to OSBL 21 c Activating Gas Recycle linefrom Amine Absorber to Recycle Compressor 21 d Scrubbed Purge Gas Streamline to OSBL 23 Recycle Compressor For compressing recycled ActivatingGas to pressure suitable for process conditions 23 a Activating Gasrecycle line from Recycle Compressor to Make-up Activating Gas mixingpoint 23 b Feed line for make-up Activating Gas (C") provided OSBLconnected to Activating Gas Recycle line (23 a) 23 c Line for conveyingmixture of Recycle Activating Gas and Make-up Activating Gas to MixingPoint (X)

047. In FIG. 2 , Feedstock HMFO (A) is fed from outside the batterylimits (OSBL) to the Oil Feed Surge Drum (1) that receives feed fromoutside the battery limits (OSBL) and provides surge volume adequate toensure smooth operation of the unit. Water entrained in the feed isremoved from the HMFO with the water being discharged a stream (1 c) fortreatment OSBL.

048. The Feedstock HMFO (A) is withdrawn from the Oil Feed Surge Drum(1) via line (1 b) by the Oil Feed Pump (3) and is pressurized to apressure required for the process. The pressurized HMFO (A') then passesthrough line (3 a) to the Oil Feed / Product Heat Exchanger (5) wherethe pressurized HMFO Feed (A') is partially heated by the Product HMFO(B). The Product HMFO (B) is a hydrocarbon stream with sulfur contentless than 5000 ppmw and preferably less than 1000 ppmw. Hydrocarbons inthe Feedstock HMFO and Product HMFO range between C₁₂ and C70+ and theboiling range is between 350° F. and 1110 + F. The pressurized FeedstockHMFO (A') passing through line (5 a) is further heated against theeffluent from the Reactor System (E) in the Reactor Feed / Effluent HeatExchanger (7).

049. The heated and pressurized Feedstock HMFO (A") in line (7 a) isthen mixed with Activating Gas (C) provided via line (23 c) at MixingPoint (X) to form a Feedstock Mixture (D). The mixing point (X) can beany well know gas / liquid mixing system or entrainment mechanism wellknown to one skilled in the art.

050. The Feedstock Mixture (D) passes through line (9 a) to the ReactorFeed Furnace (9) where the Feedstock Mixture (D) is heated to thespecified process temperature. The Reactor Feed Furnace (9) may be afired heater furnace or any other kind to type of heater as known to oneof skill in the art if it will raise the temperature of the Feedstockmixture to the desired temperature for the process conditions.

051. The fully heated Feedstock Mixture (D') exits the Reactor FeedFurnace (9) via line 9 b and is fed into the Reactor System (11). Thefully heated Feedstock Mixture (D') enters the Reactor System (11) whereenvironmental contaminates, such a sulfur, nitrogen, and metals arepreferentially removed from the Feedstock HMFO component of the fullyheated Feedstock Mixture. The Reactor System contains a catalyst whichpreferentially removes the sulfur compounds in the Feedstock HMFOcomponent by reacting them with hydrogen in the Activating Gas to formhydrogen sulfide. The Reactor System will also achieve demetalization,denitrogenation, and a certain amount of ring opening hydrogenation ofthe complex aromatics and asphaltenes, however minimal hydrocracking ofhydrocarbons should take place. The process conditions of hydrogenpartial pressure, reaction pressure, temperature and residence time asmeasured by time space velocity are optimized to achieve desired finalproduct quality. A more detailed discussion of the Reactor System, thecatalyst, the process conditions, and other aspects of the process arecontained below in the “Reactor System Description.”

052. The Reactor System Effluent (E) exits the Reactor System (11) vialine (11 a) and exchanges heat against the pressurized and partiallyheats the Feedstock HMFO (A′) in the Reactor Feed / Effluent Exchanger(7). The partially cooled Reactor System Effluent (E′) then flows vialine (11 c) to the Hot Separator (13).

053. The Hot Separator (13) separates the gaseous components of theReactor System Effluent (F) which are directed to line (13 a) from theliquid components of the Reactor System effluent (G) which are directedto line (13 b). The gaseous components of the Reactor System effluent inline (13 a) are cooled against air in the Hot Separator Vapor Air Cooler(15) and then flow via line (15 a) to the Cold Separator (17).

054. The Cold Separator (17) further separates any remaining gaseouscomponents from the liquid components in the cooled gaseous componentsof the Reactor System Effluent (F'). The gaseous components from theCold Separator (F") are directed to line (17 a) and fed onto the AmineAbsorber (21). The Cold Separator (17) also separates any remaining ColdSeparator hydrocarbon liquids (H) in line (17 b) from any Cold Separatorcondensed liquid water (I). The Cold Separator condensed liquid water(I) is sent OSBL via line (17 c) for treatment.

055. The hydrocarbon liquid components of the Reactor System effluentfrom the Hot Separator (G) in line (13 b) and the Cold Separatorhydrocarbon liquids (H) in line (17 b) are combined and are fed to theOil Product Stripper System (19). The Oil Product Stripper System (19)removes any residual hydrogen and hydrogen sulfide from the Product HMFO(B) which is discharged in line (19 b) to storage OSBL. The vent stream(M) from the Oil Product Stripper in line (19 a) may be sent to the fuelgas system or to the flare system that are OSBL. A more detaileddiscussion of the Oil Product Stripper System is contained in the “OilProduct Stripper System Description.”

056. The gaseous components from the Cold Separator (F") in line (17 a)contain a mixture of hydrogen, hydrogen sulfide and light hydrocarbons(mostly methane and ethane). This vapor stream (17 a) feeds an AmineAbsorber (21) where it is contacted against Lean Amine (J) provided OSBLvia line (21 a) to the Amine Absorber (21) to remove hydrogen sulfidefrom the gases making up the Activating Gas recycle stream (C′). Richamine (K) which has absorbed hydrogen sulfide exits the bottom of theAmine Absorber (21) and is sent OSBL via line (21 b) for amineregeneration and sulfur recovery.

057. The Amine Absorber overhead vapor in line (21 c) is preferablyrecycled to the process as a Recycle Activating Gas (C') via the RecycleCompressor (23) and line (23 a) where it is mixed with the MakeupActivating Gas (C") provided OSBL by line (23 b). This mixture ofRecycle Activating Gas (C') and Makeup Activating Gas (C") to form theActivating Gas (C) utilized in the process via line (23 c) as notedabove. A Scrubbed Purge Gas stream (H) is taken from the Amine Absorberoverhead vapor line (21 c) and sent via line (21 d) to OSBL to preventthe buildup of light hydrocarbons or other non-condensables.

058. Reactor System Description: The Reactor System (11) illustrated inFIG. 2 comprises a single reactor vessel loaded with the processcatalyst and sufficient controls, valves and sensors as one of skill inthe art would readily appreciate.

059. Alternative Reactor Systems in which more than one reactor vesselmay be utilized in parallel as shown in FIG. 3 a or in a cascadingseries as shown in FIG. 3 b can easily be substituted for the singlereactor vessel Reactor System (11) illustrated in FIG. 2 . In such anembodiment in FIG. 3 a , each reactor vessel (11, 12 a and 12 b) issimilarly loaded with process catalyst and can be provided the heatedFeed Mixture (D') via a common line 9 b. The effluent from each of thethree reactors is recombined in common line (11 a) and forms a combinedReactor Effluent (E) for further processing as described above. Theillustrative arrangement will allow the three reactors to carry out theprocess in parallel effectively multiplying the hydraulic capacity ofthe overall Reactor System. Control valves and isolation valves may beused to prevent feed from entering one reactor vessel (11) but notanother reactor vessel (12 a) or (12 b). In this way one reactor (11)can be by-passed and placed off-line for maintenance and reloading ofcatalyst while the remaining reactors (12 a) or (12 b) continues toreceive heated Feedstock Mixture (D'). It will be appreciated by one ofskill in the art this arrangement of reactor vessels in parallel is notlimited in number to three, but multiple additional reactor vessels canbe added as shown by dashed line reactor (12 x). The only limitation tothe number of parallel reactor vessels is plot spacing and the abilityto provide heated Feedstock Mixture (D') to each active reactor.

060. In the embodiment show in FIG. 3 b , cascading reactor vessels (14,16 and 18) are loaded with process catalyst with the same or differentactivities toward metals, sulfur or other environmental contaminates tobe removed. For example, Reactor (14) may be loaded with a highly activedemetaling catalyst, reactor (16) may be loaded with a balanceddemetaling / desulfurizing catalyst, and reactor (18) may be loaded witha highly active desulfurization catalyst. This allows for greatercontrol and balance in process conditions (temperature, pressure, spaceflow velocity, etc...) so it is tailored for each catalyst. In this wayone can optimize the parameters in each reactor depending upon thematerial being fed to that specific reactor / catalyst combination. andminimize the hydrocracking reactions. As with the prior illustrativeembodiment, multiple cascading series of reactors can be utilized (i.e.14 x, 16 x and 18 x) in parallel and in this way the benefits of such anarrangement noted above (i.e. allow one series to be “online” while theother series is “off line” for maintenance or allow increased plantcapacity).

061. The reactor(s) that form the Reactor System may be fixed bed,ebulliated bed or slurry bed or a combination of these types ofreactors. As envisioned, fixed bed reactors are preferred as these areeasier to operate and maintain.

062. The reactor vessel in the Reactor System is loaded with one or moreprocess catalysts. The exact design of the process catalyst system is afunction of feedstock properties, product requirements and operatingconstraints and optimization of the process catalyst can be carried outby routine trial and error by one of ordinary skill in the art.

063. The process catalyst(s) comprise at least one metal selected fromthe group consisting of the metals each belonging to the groups 6, 8, 9and 10 of the Periodic Table, and more preferably a mixed transitionmetal catalyst such as Ni—Mo, Co—Mo, Ni—W or Ni — Co— Mo are utilized.The metal is preferably supported on a porous inorganic oxide catalystcarrier. The porous inorganic oxide catalyst carrier is at least onecarrier selected from the group consisting of alumina, alumina/boriacarrier, a carrier containing metal-containing aluminosilicate,alumina/phosphorus carrier, alumina/alkaline earth metal compoundcarrier, alumina/titania carrier and alumina/zirconia carrier. Thepreferred porous inorganic oxide catalyst carrier is alumina. The poresize and metal loadings on the carrier may be systematically varied andtested with the desired feedstock and process conditions to optimize theproperties of the Product HMFO. Such activities are well known androutine to one of skill in the art. Catalyst in the fixed bed reactor(s)may be dense-loaded or sock-loaded.

064. The catalyst selection utilized within and for loading the ReactorSystem may be preferential to desulfurization by designing a catalystloading scheme that results in the Feedstock mixture first contacting acatalyst bed that with a catalyst preferential to demetalizationfollowed downstream by a bed of catalyst with mixed activity fordemetalization and desulfurization followed downstream by a catalyst bedwith high desulfurization activity. In effect the first bed with highdemetalization activity acts as a guard bed for the desulfurization bed.

065. The objective of the Reactor System is to treat the Feedstock HMFOat the severity required to meet the Product HMFO specification.Demetalization, denitrogenation and hydrocarbon hydrogenation reactionsmay also occur to some extent when the process conditions are optimizedso the performance of the Reactor System achieves the required level ofdesulfurization. Hydrocracking is preferably minimized to reduce thevolume of hydrocarbons formed as by-product hydrocarbons to the process.The objective of the process is to selectively remove the environmentalcontaminates from Feedstock HMFO and minimize the formation ofunnecessary by-product hydrocarbons (C1-C8 hydrocarbons).

066. The process conditions in each reactor vessel will depend upon thefeedstock, the catalyst utilized and the desired final properties of theProduct HMFO desired. Variations in conditions are to be expected by oneof ordinary skill in the art and these may be determined by pilot planttesting and systematic optimization of the process. With this in mind ithas been found that the operating pressure, the indicated operatingtemperature, the ratio of the Activating Gas to Feedstock HMFO, thepartial pressure of hydrogen in the Activating Gas and the spacevelocity all are important parameters to consider. The operatingpressure of the Reactor System should be in the range of 250 psig and3000 psig, preferably between 1000 psig and 2500 psig and morepreferably between 1500 psig and 2200 psig. The indicated operatingtemperature of the Reactor System should be 500° F. to 900 F, preferablybetween 650° F. and 850° F. and more preferably between 680° F. and 800F. The ratio of the quantity of the Activating Gas to the quantity ofFeedstock HMFO should be in the range of 250 scf gas / bbl of FeedstockHMFO to 10,000 scf gas / bbl of Feedstock HMFO, preferably between 2000scf gas / bbl of Feedstock HMFO to 5000 scf gas / bbl of Feedstock HMFOand more preferably between 2500 scf gas / bbl of Feedstock HMFO to 4500scf gas / bbl of Feedstock HMFO. The Activating Gas should be selectedfrom mixtures of nitrogen, hydrogen, carbon dioxide, gaseous water, andmethane, so Activating Gas has an ideal gas partial pressure of hydrogen(p_(H2)) greater than 80% of the total pressure of the Activating Gasmixture (P) and preferably wherein the Activating Gas has an ideal gaspartial pressure of hydrogen (p_(H2)) greater than 95 % of the totalpressure of the Activating Gas mixture (P). The Activating Gas may havea hydrogen mole fraction in the range between 80 % of the total moles ofActivating Gas mixture and more preferably wherein the Activating Gashas a hydrogen mole fraction between 80% and 99% of the total moles ofActivating Gas mixture. The liquid hourly space velocity within theReactor System should be between 0.05 oil /hour / m³ catalyst and 1.0oil /hour / m³ catalyst; preferably between 0.08 oil /hour / m³ catalystand 0.5 oil /hour / m³ catalyst and more preferably between 0.1 oil/hour / m³ catalyst and 0.3 oil /hour / m³ catalyst to achievedesulfurization with product sulfur levels below 0.1 ppmw.

067. The hydraulic capacity rate of the Reactor System should be between100 bbl of Feedstock HMFO / day and 100,000 bbl of Feedstock HMFO / day,preferably between 1000 bbl of Feedstock HMFO / day and 60,000 bbl ofFeedstock HMFO / day, more preferably between 5,000 bbl of FeedstockHMFO / day and 45,000 bbl of Feedstock HMFO / day, and even morepreferably between 10,000 bbl of Feedstock HMFO / day and 30,000 bbl ofFeedstock HMFO / day. The desired hydraulic capacity may be achieved ina single reactor vessel Reactor System or in a multiple reactor vesselReactor System.

068. Oil Product Stripper System Description: The Oil Product StripperSystem (19) comprises a stripper column and ancillary equipment andutilities required to remove hydrogen, hydrogen sulfide and lighthydrocarbons lighter than diesel from the Product HMFO. Such systems arewell known to one of skill in the art a generalized functionaldescription is provided herein. Liquid from the Hot Separator (13) andCold Separator (7) feed the Oil Product Stripper Column (19). Strippingof hydrogen and hydrogen sulfide and light hydrocarbons lighter thandiesel may be achieved via a reboiler, live steam or other strippingmedium. The Oil Product Stripper System (19) may be designed with anoverhead system comprising an overhead condenser, reflux drum and refluxpump or it may be designed without an overhead system. The conditions ofthe Oil Product Stripper may be optimized to control the bulk propertiesof the Product HMFO, more specifically viscosity and density.

069. Amine Absorber System Description: The Amine Absorber System (21)comprises a gas liquid contacting column and ancillary equipment andutilities required to remove sour gas (i.e. hydrogen sulfide) from theCold Separator vapor feed so the resulting scrubbed gas can be recycledand used as Activating Gas. Such systems are well known to one of skillin the art a generalized functional description is provided herein.Vapors from the Cold Separator (17) feed the contacting column / system(19). Lean Amine (or other suitable sour gas stripping fluids orsystems) provided from OSBL is utilized to scrub the Cold Separatorvapor so hydrogen sulfide is effectively removed. The Amine AbsorberSystem (19) may be designed with a gas drying system to remove the anywater vapor entrained into the Recycle Activating Gas (C').

070. The following examples will provide one skilled in the art with amore specific illustrative embodiment for conducting the processdisclosed and claimed herein:

Example 1

071. Overview: The purpose of a pilot test run is to demonstrate thatfeedstock HMFO can be processed through a reactor loaded withcommercially available catalysts at specified conditions to removeenvironmental contaminates, specifically sulfur and other contaminantsfrom the HMFO to produce a product HMFO that is MARPOL compliant, thatis production of a Low Sulfur Heavy Marine Fuel Oil (LS - HMFO) orUltra-Low Sulfur Heavy Marine Fuel Oil (USL-HMFO).

072. Pilot Unit Set Up: The pilot unit will be set up with two 434 cm³reactors arranged in series to process the feedstock HMFO. The leadreactor will be loaded with a blend of a commercially availablehydro-demetaling (HDM) catalyst and a commercially availablehydro-transition (HDT) catalyst. One of skill in the art will appreciatethat the HDT catalyst layer may be formed and optimized using a mixtureof HDM and HDS catalysts combined with an inert material to achieve thedesired intermediate / transition activity levels. The second reactorwill be loaded with a blend of the commercially availablehydro-transition (HDT) and a commercially available hydrodesulfurization(HDS). Alternatively, one can load the second reactor simply with acommercially hydrodesulfurization (HDS) catalyst. One of skill in theart will appreciate that the specific feed properties of the FeedstockHMFO may affect the proportion of HDM, HDT and HDS catalysts in thereactor system. A systematic process of testing different combinationswith the same feed will yield the optimized catalyst combination for anyfeedstock and reaction conditions. For this example, the first reactorwill be loaded with ⅔ hydro-demetaling catalyst and ⅓ hydro-transitioncatalyst. The second reactor will be loaded with allhydrodesulfurization catalyst. The catalysts in each reactor will bemixed with glass beads (approximately 50% by volume) to improve liquiddistribution and better control reactor temperature. For this pilot testrun, one should use these commercially available catalysts: HDM:Albemarle KFR 20 series or equivalent; HDT: Albemarle KFR 30 series orequivalent; HDS: Albemarle KFR 50 or KFR 70 or equivalent. Once set upof the pilot unit is complete, the catalyst can be activated bysulfiding the catalyst using dimethyldisulfide (DMDS) in a manner wellknown to one of skill in the art.

073. Pilot Unit Operation: Upon completion of the activating step, thepilot unit will be ready to receive the feedstock HMFO and ActivatingGas feed. For the present example, the Activating Gas can be technicalgrade or better hydrogen gas. The mixed Feedstock HMFO and ActivatingGas will be provided to the pilot plant at rates and operatingconditions as specified: Oil Feed Rate: 108.5 ml/h (space velocity =0.25/h); Hydrogen/Oil Ratio: 570 Nm3/m3 (3200 scf/bbl); ReactorTemperature: 372° C. (702° F.); Reactor Outlet Pressure: 13.8 MPa(g)(2000 psig).

074. One of skill in the art will know that the rates and conditions maybe systematically adjusted and optimized depending upon feed propertiesto achieve the desired product requirements. The unit will be brought toa steady state for each condition and full samples taken so analyticaltests can be completed. Material balance for each condition should beclosed before moving to the next condition.

075. Expected impacts on the Feedstock HMFO properties are: SulfurContent (wt%): Reduced by at least 80%; Metals Content (wt %): Reducedby at least 80%; MCR / Asphaltene Content (wt %): Reduced by at least30%; Nitrogen Content (wt %): Reduced by at least 20%; C1-Naphtha Yield(wt%): Not over 3.0% and preferably not over 1.0%.

076. Process conditions in the Pilot Unit can be systematically adjustedas per Table 4 to assess the impact of process conditions and optimizethe performance of the process for the specific catalyst and feedstockHMFO utilized.

Table 4 Optimization of Process Conditions Case HC Feed Rate (ml/h),[LHSV( /h)] Nm³ H₂/m³ oil / scf H₂/bbl oil Temp (°C/°F) Pressure(MPa(g)/psig) Baseline 108.5 [0.25] 570 / 3200 372 / 702 13.8 / 2000 T1108.5 [0.25] 570 / 3200 362 / 684 13.8/2000 T2 108.5 [0.25] 570 / 3200382/720 13.8/2000 L1 130.2 [0.30] 570 / 3200 372 / 702 13.8 / 2000 L286.8 [0.20] 570 / 3200 372 / 702 13.8/2000 H1 108.5 [0.25] 500/2810 372/ 702 13.8 / 2000 H2 108.5 [0.25] 640 / 3590 372 / 702 13.8/2000 S1 65.1[0.15] 620 / 3480 385/725 15.2/2200

077. In this way, the conditions of the pilot unit can be optimized toachieve less than 0.5% wt. sulfur product HMFO and preferably a 0.1% wt.sulfur product HMFO. Conditions for producing ULS-HMFO (i.e. 0.1% wt.sulfur product HMFO) will be: Feedstock HMFO Feed Rate: 65.1 ml/h (spacevelocity = 0.15/h); Hydrogen/Oil Ratio: 620 Nm³/m³ (3480 scf/bbl);Reactor Temperature: 385° C. (725° F.); Reactor Outlet Pressure: 15MPa(g) (2200 psig)

078. Table 5 summarizes the anticipated impacts on key properties ofHMFO.

Table 5 Expected Impact of Process on Key Properties of HMFO PropertyMinimum Typical Maximum Sulfur Conversion / Removal 80% 90% 98% MetalsConversion / Removal 80% 90% 100% MCR Reduction 30% 50% 70% AsphalteneReduction 30% 50% 70% Nitrogen Conversion 10% 30% 70% C1 through NaphthaYield 0.5% 1.0% 4.0% Hydrogen Consumption (scf/bbl) 500 750 1500

079. Table 6 lists analytical tests to be carried out for thecharacterization of the Feedstock HMFO and Product HMFO. The analyticaltests include those required by ISO for the Feedstock HMFO and theproduct HMFO to qualify and trade in commerce as ISO compliant residualmarine fuels. The additional parameters are provided so that one skilledin the art will be able to understand and appreciate the effectivenessof the inventive process.

Table 6 Analytical Tests and Testing Procedures Sulfur Content ISO 8754or ISO 14596 or ASTM D4294 Density @ 15° C. ISO 3675 or ISO 12185Kinematic Viscosity @ 50° C. ISO 3104 Pour Point, °C ISO 3016 FlashPoint, °C ISO 2719 CCAI ISO 8217, ANNEX B Ash Content ISO 6245 TotalSediment - Aged ISO 10307-2 Micro Carbon Residue, mass% ISO 10370 H2S,mg/kg IP 570 Acid Number ASTM D664 Water ISO 3733 Specific ContaminantsIP 501 or IP 470 (unless indicated otherwise) Vanadium or ISO 14597Sodium Aluminum or ISO 10478 Silicon or ISO 10478 Calcium or IP 500 Zincor IP 500 Phosphorous IP 500 Nickle Iron Distillation ASTM D7169 C:HRatio ASTM D3178 SARA Analysis ASTM D2007 Asphaltenes, wt% ASTM D6560Total Nitrogen ASTM D5762 Vent Gas Component Analysis FID GasChromatography or comparable

080. Table 7 contains the Feedstock HMFO analytical test results and theProduct HMFO analytical test results expected from the inventive processthat indicate the production of a LS HMFO. It will be noted by one ofskill in the art that under the conditions, the levels of hydrocarboncracking will be minimized to levels substantially lower than 10%, morepreferably less than 5% and even more preferably less than 1% of thetotal mass balance.

Table 7 Analytical Results Feedstock HMFO Product HMFO Sulfur Content,mass% 3.0 0.3 Density @ 15 C, kg/m³ 990 950 ⁽¹⁾ Kinematic Viscosity @ 50C, mm²/s 380 100 ⁽¹⁾ Pour Point, C 20 10 Flash Point, C 110 100⁽¹⁾ CCAI850 820 Ash Content, mass% 0.1 0.0 Total Sediment - Aged, mass% 0.1 0.0Micro Carbon Residue, mass% 13.0 6.5 H2S, mg/kg 0 0 Acid Number, mg KO/g1 0.5 Water, vol% 0.5 0 Specific Contaminants, mg/kg Vanadium 180 20Sodium 30 1 Aluminum 10 1 Silicon 30 3 Calcium 15 1 Zinc 7 1 Phosphorous2 0 Nickle 40 5 Iron 20 2 IBP 160 / 320 120 / 248 5 %wt 235 / 455 225 /437 10 %wt 290 / 554 270/518 30 %wt 410 / 770 370 / 698 50 %wt 540 /1004 470 / 878 70 %wt 650 / 1202 580/ 1076 90 %wt 735 / 1355 660 / 1220FBP 820/ 1508 730 / 1346 C:H Ratio (ASTM D3178) 1.2 1.3 Saturates 16 22Aromatics 50 50 Resins 28 25 Asphaltenes 6 3 Asphaltenes, wt% 6.0 2.5Total Nitrogen, mg/kg 4000 3000 Note: (1) It is expected that propertywill be adjusted to a higher value by post process removal of lightmaterial via distillation or stripping from product HMFO.

081. The product HMFO produced by the inventive process will reach ULSHMFO limits (i.e. 0.1% wt. sulfur product HMFO) by systematic variationof the process parameters, for example by a lower space velocity or byusing a Feedstock HMFO with a lower initial sulfur content.

Example 2: RMG-380 HMFO

082. Pilot Unit Set Up: A pilot unit was set up as noted above inExample 1 with the following changes: the first reactor was loaded with:as the first (upper) layer encountered by the feedstock 70% volAlbemarle KFR 20 series hydro-demetaling catalyst and 30% vol AlbemarleKFR 30 series hydro-transition catalyst as the second (lower) layer. Thesecond reactor was loaded with 20% Albemarle KFR 30 serieshydrotransition catalyst as the first (upper) layer and 80% volhydrodesulfurization catalyst as the second (lower) layer. The catalystwas activated by sulfiding the catalyst with dimethyldisulfide (DMDS) ina manner well known to one of skill in the art.

083. Pilot Unit Operation: Upon completion of the activating step, thepilot unit was ready to receive the feedstock HMFO and Activating Gasfeed. The Activating Gas was technical grade or better hydrogen gas. TheFeedstock HMFO was a commercially available and merchantable ISO 8217:2017 compliant HMFO, except for a high sulfur content (2.9 wt %). Themixed Feedstock HMFO and Activating Gas was provided to the pilot plantat rates and conditions as specified in Table 8 below. The conditionswere varied to optimize the level of sulfur in the product HMFOmaterial.

Table 8 Process Conditions Product HMFO Case HC Feed Rate (ml/h), [LHSV(/h)] Nm³ H₂/m³ oil / scf H₂/bbl oil Temp (°C /°F) Pressure (MPa(g)/psig)Sulfur % wt. Baseline 108.5 [0.25] 570 / 3200 371 /700 13.8/2000 0.24 T1108.5 [0.25] 570 / 3200 362 / 684 13.8/2000 0.53 T2 108.5 [0.25] 570 /3200 382/720 13.8/2000 0.15 L1 130.2 [0.30] 570 / 3200 372 / 70213.8/2000 0.53 S1 65.1 [0.15] 620 / 3480 385/725 15.2 / 2200 0.10 P1108.5 [0.25] 570 / 3200 371 / 700 / 1700 0.56 T2 / P1 108.5 [0.25] 570 /3200 382/720 / 1700 0.46

084. Analytical data for a representative sample of the feedstock HMFOand representative samples of product HMFO are provided below:

Table 7 Analytical Results – HMFO (RMG-380) Feedstock Product ProductSulfur Content, mass% 2.9 0.3 0.1 Density @ 15° C., kg/m³ 988 932 927Kinematic Viscosity @ 50° C., mm²/s 382 74 47 Pour Point, °C -3 -12 -30Flash Point, °C 116 96 90 CCAI 850 812 814 Ash Content, mass% 0.05 0.00.0 Total Sediment - Aged, mass% 0.04 0.0 0.0 Micro Carbon Residue,mass% 11.5 3.3 4.1 H2S, mg/kg 0.6 0 0 Acid Number, mg KO/g 0.3 0.1 >0.05Water, vol% 0 0.0 0.0 Specific Contaminants, mg/kg Vanadium 138 15 < 1Sodium 25 5 2 Aluminum 21 2 < 1 Silicon 16 3 1 Calcium 6 2 < 1 Zinc 5 <1 < 1 Phosphorous <1 2 1 Nickle 33 23 2 Iron 24 8 1 IBP 178 / 352168/334 161 / 322 5 %wt 258 / 496 235 / 455 230 / 446 10 %wt 298 / 569270/518 264 / 507 30 %wt 395 / 743 360 / 680 351 / 664 50 %wt 517 / 962461 / 862 439 / 822 70 %wt 633 / 1172 572 / 1062 552 / 1026 90 %wt >720/ > 1328 694 / 1281 679 / 1254 FBP >720 / > 1328 >720 / >1328 >720/ >1328 C:H Ratio (ASTM D3178) 1.2 1.3 1.3 Saturates 25.2 28.4 29.4Aromatics 50.2 61.0 62.7 Resins 18.6 6.0 5.8 Asphaltenes 6.0 4.6 2.1Asphaltenes, wt% 6.0 4.6 2.1 Total Nitrogen, mg/kg 3300 1700 1600

085. As noted above in Table 7, both feedstock HMFO and product HMFOexhibited observed bulk properties consistent with ISO 8217: 2017 for amerchantable residual marine fuel oil, except that the sulfur content ofthe product HMFO was significantly reduced as noted above when comparedto the feedstock HMFO.

086. One of skill in the art will appreciate that the above product HMFOproduced by the inventive process has achieved not only an ISO 8217:2017compliant LS HMFO (i.e. 0.5%wt. sulfur) but also an ISO 8217:2017compliant ULS HMFO limits (i.e. 0.1% wt. sulfur) product HMFO.

Example 3: RMK-500 HMFO

087. The feedstock to the pilot reactor utilized in example 2 above waschanged to a commercially available and merchantable ISO 8217: 2017RMK-500 compliant HMFO, except that it has high environmentalcontaminates (i.e. sulfur (3.3 wt %)). Other bulk characteristic of theRMK-500 feedstock high sulfur HMFO are provide below:

Table 8 Analytical Results- Feedstock HMFO (RMK-500) Sulfur Content,mass% 3.3 Density @ 15° C., kg/m³ 1006 Kinematic Viscosity @ 50° C.,mm²/s 500

088. The mixed Feedstock (RMK-500) HMFO and Activating Gas was providedto the pilot plant at rates and conditions and the resulting sulfurlevels achieved in the table below

Table 9 Process Conditions Product (RMK-500) Case HC Feed Rate (ml/h),[LHSV( /h)] Nm³ H₂/m³ oil / scf H₂/bbl oil Temp (°C /°F) Pressure(MPa(g)/psig) sulfur %wt. A 108.5 [0.25] 640 / 3600 377/710 13.8/20000.57 B 95.5 [0.22] 640 / 3600 390 /735 13.8/2000 0.41 C 95.5 [0.22] 640/ 3600 390 /735 11.7 / 1700 0.44 D 95.5 [0.22] 640 / 3600 393 / 740 10.3/ 1500 0.61 E 95.5 [0.22] 640 / 3600 393 / 740 17.2/ 2500 0.37 F 95.5[0.22] 640 / 3600 393 / 740 8.3 / 1200 0.70 G 95.5 [0.22] 640 / 3600416/780 8.3 / 1200 0.37

089. The resulting product (RMK-500) HMFO exhibited observed bulkproperties consistent with the feedstock (RMK-500) HMFO, except that thesulfur content was significantly reduced as noted in the above table.

090. One of skill in the art will appreciate that the above product HMFOproduced by the inventive process has achieved a LS HMFO (i.e. 0.5%wt.sulfur) product HMFO having bulk characteristics of a ISO 8217: 2017compliant RMK-500 residual fuel oil. It will also be appreciated thatthe process can be successfully carried out under non-hydrocrackingconditions (i.e. lower temperature and pressure) that substantiallyreduce the hydrocracking of the feedstock material. It should be notedthat when conditions were increased to much higher pressure (Example E)a product with a lower sulfur content was achieved, however it wasobserved that there was an increase in light hydrocarbons and wildnaphtha production.

091. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changescould be made to the illustrative embodiments described above withoutdeparting from the broad inventive concepts thereof. It is understood,therefore, that the inventive concepts disclosed are not limited to theillustrative embodiments or examples disclosed, but it is intended tocover modifications within the scope of the inventive concepts asdefined by the claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A process for reducing Environmental Contaminantsin a Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil, the process comprising: mixing aquantity of Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil, wherein the Feedstock HeavyMarine Fuel Oil is compliant with ISO 8217:2017 as a Table 2 residualmarine fuel oil, except the Environmental Contaminants content isgreater than 0.5 %wt and wherein the Environmental Contaminants areselected from the group consisting of sulfur, vanadium, nickel, iron,aluminum and silicon and combinations thereof, with a quantity ofActivating Gas mixture to give a feedstock mixture; contacting thefeedstock mixture with one or more catalysts under reactive conditionsto form a Process Mixture from said feedstock mixture, wherein theProcess Mixture contains one or more Product Heavy Marine Fuel Oilliquid components, wherein the reactive conditions are selected toachieve a level of hydrocracking of the Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oilof less than 10% of the total mass balance; separating the one or moreProduct Heavy Marine Fuel Oil liquid components of the Process Mixturefrom the Process Mixture to form a Product Heavy Marine Fuel Oil; anddischarging the Product Heavy Marine Fuel Oil.
 2. The process of claim1, wherein said Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil has a sulfur content asdetermined by ISO 14596 or ISO 8754 between the range of 5.0 %wt to 1.0%wt.
 3. The process of claim 1, wherein said Product Heavy Marine FuelOil has bulk properties that comply with ISO 8217:2017 as a Table 2residual marine fuel oil and has a maximum sulfur content as determinedby ISO 14596 or ISO 8754 between the range of 0.05 %wt to 0.50 %wt. 4.The process of claim 1, wherein the contacting of the feedstock mixturewith one or more catalysts under reactive conditions are selected tohydrodemetallize the Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil to a level ofmetals removal greater than 80% of the metal content of the FeedstockHeavy Marine Fuel Oil and are selected to hydrodesulfurize the FeedstockHeavy Marine Fuel Oil to a level of sulfur removal greater than 80% ofthe sulfur content of the Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil and areselected to have a hydrogen consumption in the range between 500 and1500 scf/bbl of Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil.
 5. The process of claim1, wherein said Activating Gas mixture is selected from mixtures ofnitrogen, hydrogen, carbon dioxide, gaseous water, and methane, suchthat the Activating Gas mixture has an ideal gas partial pressure ofhydrogen (p_(H2)) greater than 80% of a total pressure of the ActivatingGas mixture (P), and wherein the reactive conditions include a ratio ofthe quantity of the Activating Gas mixture to the quantity of FeedstockHeavy Marine Fuel Oil in the range of 250 scf gas / bbl of FeedstockHeavy Marine Fuel Oil to 10,000 scf gas / bbl of Feedstock Heavy MarineFuel Oil, a total pressure between of 250 psig and 3000 psig, and anindicated temperature between of 500° F. to 900° F., and, a liquidhourly space velocity between 0.05 /hour and 1.0 /hour.
 6. A process forreducing the environmental contaminants in a Feedstock Heavy Marine FuelOil, the process comprising: mixing a quantity of Feedstock Heavy MarineFuel Oil, wherein the Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil is compliant withISO 8217:2017 as a Table 2 residual marine fuel oil, except the sulfurcontent as determined by ISO 14596 or ISO 8754 is greater than 0.5 %wt,with a quantity of Activating Gas, wherein the Activating Gas has anideal gas partial pressure of hydrogen (p_(H2)) greater than 80% of atotal pressure of the Activating Gas (P) to give a feedstock mixture;providing the feedstock mixture to at least one reactor vessel andcontacting the feedstock mixture under reactive conditions in said atleast one reactor vessel with one or more hydrotreating catalysts toform a Process Mixture from said feedstock mixture wherein said ProcessMixture includes a liquid Product Heavy Marine Fuel Oil component,wherein the reactive conditions are selected to achieve a level ofhydrocracking of the Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil of less than 10% ofthe total mass balance; receiving said Process Mixture in at least oneseparating vessel and separating the liquid Product Heavy Marine FuelOil components of the Process Mixture from the Process Mixture;discharging the Product Heavy Marine Fuel Oil components from the atleast one separating vessel.
 7. The process of claim 6, wherein saidFeedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil has a sulfur content as determined byISO 14596 or ISO 8754 between the range of 5.0 %wt to 1.0 %wt.
 8. Theprocess of claim 7, wherein said Product Heavy Marine Fuel Oilcomponents have a sulfur content as determined by ISO 14596 or ISO 8754less than 0.5 %wt, a kinematic viscosity at 50° C. as determined by ISO3104 and a density at 15° C. as determined by ISO 3675 to give a CCAI inthe range of 780 to 870, a flash point as determined by ISO 2719 nolower than 60.0° C., and a maximum total sediment - aged as determinedby ISO 10307-2 of 0.10 %wt.
 9. The process of claim 7, wherein thereceiving said Process Mixture in at least two separating vessels andseparating the liquid Product Heavy Marine Fuel Oil components of theProcess Mixture from the Process Mixture.
 10. The process of claim 7wherein the reactive conditions include a ratio of the quantity of theActivating Gas to the quantity of Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil in therange of 250 scf gas / bbl of Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil to 10,000scf gas / bbl of Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil, a total pressurebetween 250 psig and 3000 psig, an indicated temperature between 500° F.to 900° F., and a liquid hourly space velocity within the at least onereactor vessel is between 0.05 /hour and 1.0 /hour.
 11. The process ofclaim 6, wherein the contacting of the Feedstock Mixture with one ormore metal heterogeneous catalysts under reactive conditions areselected to hydrodemetallize the Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil to alevel of metals removal greater than 80% of the metal content of theFeedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil and are selected to hydrodesulfurize theFeedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil to a level of sulfur removal greaterthan 80% of the sulfur content of the Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oiland are selected to have a hydrogen consumption in the range between 500and 1500 scf/bbl of Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil.
 12. The process ofclaim 11, wherein said at least one reactor vessel contains one or moretransition metal heterogeneous catalysts and is configured to include atleast two reactor vessels, wherein each reactor independently selectedfrom the group consisting of: an ebulliated bed reactor, a fixed bedreactor, and combinations thereof.
 13. The process of claim 11, whereinthe one or more transition metal heterogeneous catalyst comprises: aporous inorganic oxide catalyst carrier and impregnated with a blend oftransition metal catalyst materials, wherein the porous inorganic oxidecatalyst carrier is alumina and wherein the transition metal catalystmaterials are selected from the group consisting of Ni—Mo, Co—Mo, Ni—Wor Ni — Co—Mo.
 14. The process of claim 6, wherein said Product HeavyMarine Fuel Oil is compliant with ISO 8217:2017 as a Table 2 residualmarine fuel oil and has a maximum sulfur content as determined byISO15596 or ISO8754 between the range of 0.05 %wt to 0.5 %wt.
 15. Theprocess of claim 6, wherein said Product Heavy Marine Fuel Oil has: hasa maximum sulfur content as determined by ISO15596 or ISO8754 betweenthe range of 0.05 %wt to 0.5 %wt, a kinematic viscosity at 50° C. asdetermined by ISO 3104 and a density at 15° C. as determined by ISO 3675to give a CCAI is in the range of 780 to 870 and a flash point asdetermined by ISO 2719 no lower than 60.0° C., and a maximum totalsediment - aged as determined by ISO 10307-2 of 0.10 % wt.
 16. A devicefor reducing environmental contaminants in a Feedstock Heavy Marine FuelOil, the device comprising: at least one first vessel for receiving aquantity of the Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil mixed with a quantity ofan Activating Gas and contacting the mixture with one or more catalyststo form a Process Mixture; at least one second vessel in fluidcommunication with the first vessel, said second vessel for receivingsaid Process Mixture from said first vessel, wherein said second vesselseparates the liquid components of the Process Mixture from the ProcessMixture; and means for discharging a Product Heavy Marine Fuel Oil. 17.The device of claim 16, wherein the at least one first vessel iscomprised of two or more reactor vessels, wherein each of the two ormore reactor vessels is independently selected from the group consistingof an ebulliated bed reactor, a fixed bed reactor, and combinationsthereof and wherein each of the two or more reactor vessels contains oneor more transition metal heterogeneous catalysts under reactiveconditions that are selected from the group of reactive conditionsconsisting of hydrodemetallization the Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oilto a level of metals removal greater than 80% of the metal content ofthe Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil, hydrodesulfurization the FeedstockHeavy Marine Fuel Oil to a level of sulfur removal greater than 80% ofthe sulfur content of the Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil, andcombinations thereof; and wherein the reactive conditions are selectedto have a hydrogen consumption in the range between 500 and 1500 scf/bblof Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil.
 18. The device of claim 17, whereinthe one or more transition metal heterogeneous catalysts comprises: aporous inorganic oxide catalyst carrier and a transition metal catalyst,wherein the preferred porous inorganic oxide catalyst carrier is aluminaand wherein the preferred transition metal catalyst is Ni—Mo, Co—Mo,Ni—W or Ni — Co—Mo.
 19. The device of claim 16, wherein said FeedstockHeavy Marine Fuel Oil has bulk properties that comply with ISO 8217:2017as a Table 2 residual marine fuel and has a sulfur content (ISO 14596 orISO 8754) between the range of 5.0 %wt to 1.0 %wt.
 20. The device ofclaim 16, wherein the maximum sulfur content (ISO 14596 or ISO 8754) ofsaid Product Heavy Marine Fuel Oil is between 1% and 10% of the maximumsulfur content of the Feedstock Heavy Marine Fuel Oil.